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Thursday, January 17, 2013

Apple Sage Turkey Chops

Turkey breast cutlets. I wish there was something nice I could say about them, but I can't. They are dry, filled with gristle, and generally awful. Around here it's very easy to find turkey breast cutlets, but finding their delicious cousins, turkey breast tenderloins, is a whole different thing. We have to go 40 miles into Fort Worth and even then the only place we can find them is the Joint Reserve Military Base which has limited to no access to the general public, especially not for grocery shopping. Needless to say, we don't get a hold of them often,so I'm trying to find more things to make with the dreaded cutlets.
In the past, we've always tried to use cutlets in the place of chicken breast in recipes, but I mentioned to my husband that they seem more like a pork chop than a chicken breast when *LIGHT BULB* it hit me! What if I prepare them like pork chops? Maybe I could find a way to make them more edible and to be honest, I do miss pork chops. So I tried my favorite pork chop recipe and it came out really great. My husband even said if we fed them to someone who didn't know, they wouldn't be able to tell they weren't pork chops. The meat was moist and juicy and I did not notice much gristle, at least in my piece. I'd like to try breading them at some point, but for now, here is my recipe!

Mix flour and seasonings in a small bowl. Sprinkle both sides of each cutlet with seasoning mix, retaining about 1/2 for later in the recipe.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet (use a skillet you have a lid for) over medium high heat. Once just barely smoking, add chops and brown, about 1 1/2 minutes on each side. Remove cutlets and set aside. (Turkey will still be uncooked in the middle.) Add onions to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes. Add apple slices and cook another 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
Stir in vegetable broth, brown sugar, and remaining flour mixture. Bring to a boil. Return cutlets to the skillet. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 6-8 minutes.

Serve cutlets with apples and onion on the side and sauce from the pan drizzled over the top.